WBC offers events exclusively for kids 12 and under between 9 AM and 9 PM in the Heritage Room. As in previous years, the first Juniors Events begins at 6 PM on Tuesday.

Before any Junior may use the Juniors Room or participate in the Juniors Program, a parent or guardian must accompany the child to the Juniors Room to complete a consent form for the child. Among other items, this form provides contact information (e.g., cell phone number, hotel room number) to reach a parent in the event of an emergency. Only one form is required for the entire week.

This year there are 20 Juniors events. (See Schedule and Event Descriptions.) These events are FREE to children accompanied by a BPA member in attendance at the conference. While parents need not be present for the children to play, we encourage parents to lend a hand. Children should be old enough to grasp rules and play independently. (Note: Parents should refrain from playing games for their children.)

WBC offers special demonstrations and social activities for Teens ages 12-16 nightly on Wednesday through Saturday from 9 to 11 pm in Heritage. The room is open for Teen for open gaming until midnight.

The games used in the Juniors competitions are usually the same as the ones the adults play—albeit sometimes modified to make them shorter or easier to understand. The emphasis is on sportsmanship—and discovering how much fun it is to interrelate with others with a good boardgame in this age of electronic eye candy. Although all Juniors events are Class C—Coached—and will be explained, it is best if the children have some advance familiarity with the games in question.

Whenever possible, please send Juniors with copies of the games they will play in order to ensure that there are enough copies to allow everyone to play. This is particularly vital for Juniors events because many of the kids do not have games and our GMs cannot provide enough copies for everyone.

Winners receive smaller versions of the plaques their parents are striving for in the adult competitions or other prizes. More than one child has returned home with more wood than adorns their parents mantle. In some cases, GMs provide additional, non-monetary prizes.

BPA hires two adult Juniors Room Monitors who have experience working with children who will supervise the Juniors room during Juniors hours. During 2009, they will be Laurie Wojtasczyk and Lynda Shea. Regardless, WBC and its GMs assume no responsibility for keeping track of your child’s whereabouts before, during or after any Junior event. There is no substitute for parental supervision.

Remember: This is not a day care service and children should be well-behaved and respectful of others. In addition, they are expected to exhibit good sportsmanship. Any child who behaves inappropriately will be asked to leave. At the discretion of the convention director and the Board of Directors, a child who has been removed for inappropriate behavior may be restricted from future Juniors competition or required to have parental supervision when playing in a Juniors event.

Juniors Game Library

WBC members and gaming companies have donated games to a Juniors Game Library. Juniors can check out these games for use in the Juniors open gaming area. Your donations to this library are appreciated. Contact juniors@boardgamers.org.

Willing to Help?

If you’re looking for a way to “give something back” to the hobby, look no further than WBC’s Juniors Program. See the list of Juniors tournaments or our schedule of Juniors Events. To help, contact Kaarin Engelmann, the Juniors Program Coordinator, at juniors@boardgamers.org.